Motor-operated sign apparatus.



' G. BEILE. MOTOR OPERATED SIGN APPARATUS. APPLIOATION FILED no. '1,1907.

924,41 6. Patented June 8, 1909.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

THE iVORRIS PETEns co., Wasnmcrmv. u, c

G. BEILE. MOTOR OPERATED SIGN APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 7, i907.

Patented June 8, 1909.

6 SHBETS-SHEET 3.

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THE NORRIS PETERS cc., WASHINGTG'N, n. c.

. G. BEILE. MOTOR OPERATED SIGN APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 7, 1907.

Patented June 8, 1909.

s SHEETS-SHEET 4.

m m Wad/g z rns NORRIS Pen-Rs cm, WASHINGTON, n4 4:,

G. BEILE. MOTOR OPERATED SIGN APPARATUS.

APPLIOATIQN FILED DBO. 7, 190'!- ama 9m 13 JR 4 mm m J e Mr mm P r r In.\Q r m 1 M u z i n 0 I a m r a. f

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c. BEILB.

MOTOR OPERATED SIGN APPARATUS.

APPLIOATION nun DBO. 7, 1907.

Patented une 8, 1909.

e SHEETS-SHEET a.

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1n: Norims pzrsns co, WASHINGTON, n. c

OHARLES BEILE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

MOTOB-OPERATED SIGN APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed. December 7, 1907.

Patented June 8, 1909.

Serial No. 405,570.

* exhibited for a certain length of time.

One object of the invention is to provide improved means for mountingthe springrollers and taking up the signs, and improved mechanism formoving the unrolled signs from the front to the rear of the appa-- ratusand then permitting them to be rewound on their rollers.

A further object of the invention is to furnish a construction in whichthe signs are displayed by an intermittently acting take-up mechanism,the motor which operates said mechanism being stopped automatically bythe take-up mechanism when each sign is unrolled and displayed and thenrestarted after a certain period of time.

With these and other ends in view, which will appear as the invention isbetter understood, the same consists in the novel features andcombinations of parts to be here- K inafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a front-elevation ofmy improved sign-apparatus, Fig. 2 is also a front-elevation of thesign-apparatus with thefrontpart removed, and showing therelative'location of the different actuating mechanisms for the signs,Fig. 2 is an enlarged frontelevation of the apparatus, Fig. 2 shows indetail certain portions of Fig. 2*, Fig. 3 is a vertical transversesection on line 3, 3, Fig. 2, showing the carrier-belt for thespring-rollers and the driving mechanism for the same, drawn on a largerscale, Fig. 4 is a side-elevation of the carrier-chain and the actuatingmechanism and the return mechanism for the advertising signs, Fig. 4 isa detail View of one of the take-up devices, Figs. 5 and 6 arehorizontal sections on lines 5, 5, and 6, 6, Fig. 4, Figs. 7 and 8 aredetails of portions of Figs. 5 and 6 respectively, showing the arts indifferent positions, and Fig. 9 is a etail side-elevation showing thestarting and stopping mechanism for the sign-operating motor, drawn on alarger scale.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts throughout thedifferent figures of the drawings.

Referring to the drawings, C represents the casing ofmy improved sign-aparatus, which is preferably provided at t e upper part with a clock C,the dial of which is provided with a switch-device d that is closed atevery minute or other intervals of time by the second-hand orminute-hand of the clock. In the circuit of the switch d is placed astarting and stopping device D for an electric motor M, said startingand stopping device and the motor being arranged at the lower part ofthe casing C. The motor M is connected by means of a switch, that isclosed or opened by the starting and stopping device D, with a supply ofelectric current obtained either from a primary or secondary battery orfrom an electric light station.

On the armature-shaft of the electric motor M is placed a worm to whichmeshes with a worm-gear w. The shaft to of the wormgear to is supportedin bearings of the casing O and provided at each end with asprocketwheel Q03, which sprocket-wheels transmit motion by means ofsprocket-chains w to sprocket-wheels w On the shaft to of thesprocket-wheels w are mounted two driving sprocket-wheels of which meshwith two endless driving sprocket-chains to that extend throughout theheight of the casing and that are guided each by three additional guidesprocket-wheels w", of which one is located sidewise of the drivingsprocket-wheel at the lower part of the casing and the remaining two atthe upper part of the casing, as shown in Figs. 2 and 3, so that thedrivingchains 1.0 assume an oblong shape of which the longer runs arelocated respectively near the front and rear of the casing C and theshorter runs at the lower and upper portions of the same. The shaft ofof the lower guide sprocket-wheel w of the endless driving-chains w issupported in ivoted and spring-actuated bearings w S1OWI1 at the lowerleft-hand portion of Fig. 4, by which a proper degree of tension isimparted to the driving sprocket chains. The sprocket- .wheels w at thetop of the casing are mounted on shafts w extending between andjournaled in the sidewalls C.

Adjacent to the driving sprocket-chains w are arranged parallel with theside-walls of the casing C upright partitions C On these partitions aresupported the shafts of two pairs of larger s rocket-wheels b, b of equasize, which are coated adjacent to the driving-chains w at the lowerpart of the casing C. On the sprocket-wheels Z) are placed two endlesscarrier-chains B on which are mounted equidistantly from each other anumber of spr1ng-rollers N, of which twelve are shown in the drawings,though a larger or smaller number of spring-rollers may be used,according to the number of advertising signs 8 that are to be arrangedin the signap aratus. The spring-rollers b are remova y held in theirsockets on the carrierchains by means of set-screws b".

To opposite points of the driving-chains w are attached transversetake-u rods 6 which are provided at their ends with antifriction-rollersc, said rollers passing into guideways e of the side-walls of the casingC and being guided in the same. The guideways 6 for the take-up rodsextend from the lower end to the upper end of the casing and are madeapproximately semicircular at the lower end, and straight at the sides.At their lower parts the guideways are left open at certain points, asshown, and they are also left open at the upper part of the casing wherethe stretching rods are delivered to the return mechanism, which will behereinafter described. On each take-up rod c are mounted inwardlyextending arms 6 carrying antifriction rollers 6 which serve to engagestretching rods 1 that are attached to the outer ends of the advertisingsigns. The

ends of the stretching rods 1" are guided by rollers r in guideways 1'located on the partitions C said guideways extending along the sides andlower portions of the partitions but not at the upper portions. When thetakeup rollers c are moved in upward direction, they serve to take upone of the stretching rods r which is then at the front-part of thecasing C and which is moved into the path of the take-up rollers e by athrowing-in mechanism, shown in Fig. 4. The throwing-in mechanismconsists of levers Zthat are pivoted to the partitions C and extendedrearwardly adjacent the guideways r of the stretching rods-r, while tothe inner ends of the levers forwardly-extending arms Z are appliedwhich are made of two pivotally-connected parts Z that are lockedtogether by pins Z on one part, which enter recesses on the other part,so as to form straight connected leverarms when lifted in upwarddirection, but form an angle with each other for ermitting the droppingback into norma position. The lower part Z is weighted for returning thelevers Zinto their former position against stop-pins Z on the outersides of the partitions 0 At each semi-rotation of the endlessdriving-chains, one pair of take-up rollers a descends at the rear ofthe casing, while the other pair of take-up rollers c ascends at thefront-part of the same. During the downward motion of the take-uprollers c, the levers Z are lowered until the rollers have cleared thesame, and the jointed arms Z are raised, so that the stretching rod rwhich is then nearest to and in the path of the arms t is engaged by theupward motion of the arms, lifted and placed on the upper bent orshouldered ends of flat springs Z" which are at tached at their lowerends to the partitions C in the ways W, as shown in Fig. l, after whichthe jointed arms drop back into the lower position, clear of thestretching rod. The take-up rollers c are then guided in their ways bythe motion of the driving-chains so as to project into the path of thestretching rod 1' and take it along in upward direction to the upperends of the guideways, dra\\*ing thereby the advertising sign 8 againstthe tension of its spring-roller out to its full length and holding itat the front of the casing for the required length of time forexhibiting it, until by the next motion imparted to the driving-chains,the next stretching rod is taken up by the take-up roller, itsadvertising sign 8 drawn out to its full length and over the sign whichpreceded it and whose stretching rod is then taken up by thereturn-mechanism at the upper end of the casing. The signs that aredrawn out for exhibition are moved bacluvard and downward by the returnmechanism and held in stretched condition by the spring-rollers withwhich they are connected, the latter following the motion of thedriving-chains by the drag exerted by them on the carrier belts, whichlatter have no positive motion of their own but follow intermittentlythe motion of the driving-chains around their guide sprocket-wheels Thetake-up rollers 6* have free lateral play as long as the rollers a movein the open portions of the guideways a so as to clear the stretchingrods 1', but as soon as the take-up rods enter into the closed portionsthey are engaged by the guide-ways and move rigidly in the same so as toengage and carry along the stretching rod which is then placed in theirpath as described.

The return-mechanism for the stretching rods of the advertising signs islocated at the upper ends of the partitions C one return device beingarranged on each partition for taking up the stretching rods and.returning them with the signs to their former normal position on thespring-rollers of the carrierbelts. Each return-device consists of adisk or wheel g, which is provided with pairs of longer and shorterteeth g 5 in the nature of a ratchet-wheel, and recesses or pocketsbetween said teeth, the longer teeth projecting into the path of theupwardly moving stretching rods 1*, carried along by, the take uprollers e.

Alongside of the wheel 9 is arranged in the guideway r a pivoted latchg? acted on by a spring 9 having a curved edge along which t estretching rod 1" is moved so as to press it inwardly. At the same timethe latches g are moved inwardly by the stretching rod the latter isreleased by the take-up rod which simultaneously arrives at the openportion of its guideways 6 so that it swings away by gravity from thestretching rod, which is then deposited upon the upper edges of thelatches g The swinging away of the takeup rod from the stretching rod bygravity is produced by the ivoting of the take-up rod to each driving 0ain, as shown in Fig. 4 the take-up rod consisting in reality of twoparallel rods which carry the take-u devices e a one of these parallelrods being so connected to the chains as to permit the swinging out ofthe whole device, under the weight of the stretching rod, when the u peropen part of the guideways c is reac ed. From the latches g thestretching rod is taken by the adjacent upwardly -moving longer teeth 9whereupon it drops into the pockets of the wheels g above said teeth.The motion of each take-up roller 6 continues in upward direction aroundthe upper guidesprcckets until the take-up rod 6 abuts against aspring-actuated push-lever g and carries the same along in the directionof the arrow shown in the upper part of Fig. 4, so that a pusher-arm gon the push-lever g abuts against a stop-pin g on the ratchetwheel 9 andturns the ratchet-wheel on its axis, carrying thereby the stretching roddelivered to one of the pockets of the ratchetwheel along from itsposition at the frontpart of the casing to an intermediate position inthe same. The ways for the stretching rods terminate sidewise of thereturn-mechanism and permit the carrying over of the stretching rodstoward the rear of the casing. By the next motion of the ratchet-wheelg, due to the next stretching rod being delivered into the next pocketof the ratchetwheel, the stretching rod which was carried over into theintermediate position, is then moved over the upper curved edge of asecond pivoted and spring-actuated latch-lever it against the curvededge of a stationary stop-plate h which is located at the upper end ofthe rear guideway r by which the stretching rod is arrested and retainedin the angle formed by the latch-lever .h and stopplate 71 In themeantime the take-up roller 6 has passed over the upper guidesprocketwheels and commenced its descending motion. The take-up rod 6then engages the backwardly extending arm of an elbow lever 7L2, whichis pivoted at if by its upwardly extending arm to the partition C andwhich engages by a recess k in its angular portion &

a pin 7L4 on the latch-lever it so as to move the latter in forwarddirection in an arc of a circle, of which its pivot is the center, sothat the stretching rod 1", which was before supported in the anglebetween the upper edge of the latch-lever and the stop-plate, ispermitted to drop in downward direction into the guideway W. The pivotedlatch-lever h is then returned by its spring 71;, together with theelbow-lever k into its former position as soon as the pressure of thetake-up rod e on the arm of the elbow-lever is released. In the samemanner the push-lever g is also returned to normal position by itsspring 9 as shown clearly in Fig. 4, ready for the next action by thetake-up rod, so that the latch 9 the push-lever g, the latchlever h andits actuating elbow-lever 71 assume their former positions ready for thereturn of the next stretching rod, and so on. When the take-up rod movesdownwardly at the rear of the casing after having passed the elbow-leverif, it serves to support the stretching rod of the advertising sign atthe rear of the casing, said sign being gradually wound up when thetake-up rod continues its downward movement. Simultaneousl 1 with thereturn motion imparted to the stretching rods by the return-mechanismdescribed, the spring-rollers to which the signs are applied are movedwith their carrier-belts around their guide-sprockets, and during thismotion the s ring-rollers begin to wind up the signs an the more so, thecloser the stretching rods are gradually moved toward thespring-rollers, they being entirely wound up when the stretching rodsare located adjacent to and close to the spring-rollers, as shown at thelower part of Fig. 4. The endless carrier-chains receive their motionintermittently by the action of the take-up rollers on the individualstretching rods of the advertising signs. Every ime the take-up rollersengage a stretching rod and move the same in upward direction a pull isexerted on the corresponding sprin groller and the carrierchains arecompelled to follow the motion of the same around the guide-sprockets.

The starting and stopping device D for the motor M is arranged at thelower part of the casing near one corner of the same, and consists of anelectromagnet n which is placed in the circuit of a local battery andconnected with the contact-points of the switch at on the clock-dial.Below the electromagnet is arranged a fulcrumed and spring-actuatedarmature n which is attracted when the switch is closed at the intervalof a minute, or at any other interval of time by the secondor minutehandof the clock. Aprojection on the end of the armature-lever it serves toengage a fulcrumed and spring-actuated latch-lever n and holds it inposition against an antifriction-roller on the lower end of a fulcrumedelbow-lever n acted on by a spring n so as to hold said lever in theposition shown in full lines in Fig. 4 and in dotted lines in Fig. 9.

On the fulcrum-shaft of the elbow-lever n is mounted a gear-wheel nwhich meshes with a gear-wheel n" to the shaft of which is keyed aswitch-lever 71 having contactsprings a at its end. As soon as thearmature a is attracted by the electro-magnet n, the lever 77, isreleased, so that the elbowlever n is moved under the tension of itsspring against a stop-pin n whereby the gear-wheels are rotated and theswitch-lever moved in downward direction, so that its contact-springs nare moved into contact with two contact-plates a, as shown in 9, bywhich the motor-circuit is closed, the motor immediately started and anadvertising sign moved into position at the front of the casing by theaction of the motion-trans mitting sprocket-wheel and chain mechanisms,driving-chains and take-up rollers described. The exhibition of the signis permitted for a certain length of time, until the second take-up rod,which in the meantime has arrived at the lower end of its guideways,strikes against the inclined arm n of the elbow-1ever n of the startingand stopping mechanism of the motor and moves the same over in thedirection of the arrow into the position shown in dotted lines in Fig.9, whereby the gear-wheels are turned in opposite direction to theirformer motion so that the fulcrumed latch-lever n is moved by its springn into the position shown in dotted lines and into rengagement with thehool shaped end of the armature-lever, while the switch lever with itscontact springs is moved away from the contact-plates of the switch, asshown in dotted lines in Fig. 9 and in full lines in Fig. 4, whereby thecurrent supplied to the motor is interrupted and its motion immediatelyarrested. During this interruption the motion of the driving-belts is ofcourse interrupted and the sign which is at this time in front of thecasing exhibited until the switch on the clock-dial closes again thecircuit of the local battery and excites the eleetromagnet n, attractsthe armature n releases the latch-lever so that the same under theinfluence of the spring actuates the switch-mechanism and closes thecircuit of the motor so as to supply again current to the same and startthereby the motor and the motion-transmitting mechanism of thedriving-belts, move by the motion of the latter the take-up rod which isat the lower end of the driving-chain into engagement with thestretching rod of the next sign to be exhibited so that the same ismoved upwardly to its full extent, while the sign before exhibited is bytlie return mechanism movedinto intermediate position. It is held inthis position until the third sign is moved up, when it IS moved overonto the latcl1-1nechanism and returned by the same back along the rearguideways into normal, wound-up position on its spring-roller. Thestarting and stopping motion of the motor and the motion transmittingmechanism, and the moving of a sign in position for exhibition and itsgradual return to its normal position on the carrierbelts takes placeintermittently and automatically and produces thereby the successiveexhibition of all the advertising signs in the apparatus.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent:

1. In a sign apparatus, the combination of pairs of sprocket-wheelsarranged one above the other, carrier-chains traveling on saidsprocket-wheels, sign-carrying spring-rollers mounted on saidcarrier-chains and movable with the latter upwardly at the front of theapparatus and downwardly at the rear, and take-up mechanism for thesigns.

2. In a sign apparatus, the combination of carrying elements,spring-rollers mounted on said elements and having advertising signswound thereon, and means for unrolling and. displaying the signs at thefront of the apparatus and then moving them, while extended vertically,to the rear of the apparatus.

3. In a sign apparatus, the combination of a casing, movably mountedspring-rollers in said casing having advertising signs wound thereon,means for unrolling and displaying the si ns at the front of theapparatus, and means for successively moving each sign so displayed overto the rear part of the 'asin 4. In a sign apparatus, the combination ofa casing, carrying elements in the lower part of the casing,sign-carrying spring-rollers mounted on said elements and movabletherewith upwardly at the front of the casing and downwardly at therear, and means for taking up the free ends of the signs from therollers, pulling them in upward direction at the front of the casing,then moving them rearwardly and finally lowering them at the rear of thecasing.

5. In a sign apparatus, the combination of a casing, freely movablezarrier-clrains in the lower part of the casing, sign- -arryingspringrollers carried by said chains, means for unrolling and pullingupwardly each sign at the front of the casing, and means for moving thefree end of each extended. sign horizontall to the rear the corres)ondin S)li11-- h D roller being also moved in the same direction by thefreely movable carrier-chains.

In a sign apparatus, the combination of endless carrier-chains,spring-rollers mounted on said chains and having advertising signs woundthereon, means for successively unwinding the signs and pulling them inupward direction at the front of the apparatus, and means for moving thesigns while in pulled-up position over to the rear of the apparatus, themeans for pulling the signs upwardly being movable downwardly at therear of the apparatus to permit the gradual winding up of said signs.

7. In a sign apparatus, the combination of endless carrier-chains havingsign-carrying springrollers mounted thereon, endless driving-chainshaving take-up devices for the signs which pull the same upwardly at thefront of the apparatus, and mechanism by which the upper free ends ofthe signs are moved over to the rear of the apparatus while the rollerson which said signs are mounted move rearwardly with said carrierchains.

'8. In a sign apparatus, the combination of movably mountedsign-carrying spring-rollers, take-up mechanism for the signs, a motorfor operating the take-up mechanism, and a switch for said motorautomatically operated by said take-up mechanism.

9. In a sign apparatus, the combination of movably mounted sign-carryingspring-rollers, take-up mechanism for the signs embodying endless chainsand take-up devices carried thereby, a motor for driving said chains, aswitch in the circuit of said motor, means by which said take-up devicesautomatically operat'e said switch to stop the motor, and means forautomatically restarting the motor.

10. In a sign apparatus, the combination of a plurality of movablymounted springrollers carrying advertising signs, take-up mechanism forsaid signs embodying endless chains and take-up devices carried thereby,a motor for driving said chains, a switch controlling the operation ofsaid motor, a mechanical connection by which said take-up devicesautomatically actuate the switch to stop the motor, and means forautomatically restarting the motor after the lapse of a certain time.

11. An advertising sign apparatus comprising a plurality of advertisingsigns, springrollers for winding up said signs, stretching rodsconnected to the outer ends of said si ns, endless carrier-chains forthe springro ers, take-up mechanism for intermittently engaging onestretching rod after the other for successively exhibiting the signs,means for returning the stretching rods at the rear of thecarrier-chains so as to permit the winding up of the signs on, thespring-rollers, and an intermittent y actuated driving mechanism forimparting intermittent motion to the take-up mechanism.

12. A sign apparatus consisting of endless carrier-chains,spring-rollers supported equidistantly on said carrier-chains,advertising signs wound on said spring-rollers, stretching rods at theouter ends of said advertising signs, mechanism for engagingintermittently and successively the stretching rods so as to extend thesigns to their full length, and a return mechanism for returning thestretching rods and signs at the rear of the carrier chains.

13. In an advertising sign apparatus, the combination of intermittentlyactuated driving-chains, take-up devices on said drivingchains, endlesscarrier-chains, spring-rollers on said carrier chains, advertising signswound up on said spring-rollers, stretching rods at the outer ends ofsaid signs, a lever mechanism operated by one of said take-up,

devices for moving one stretching rod after the other into the path ofthe other take-up device, a return mechanism for the stretching rods,and means for im arting intermittent motion to the driving-c ains fortaking up one stretching rod after the other for successively unwindingand exhibiting the signs.

14. In an advertising sign apparatus, the combination, with thedriving-chains, of take-up devices carried by the same, endlesscarrier-chains provided with spring-rollers, advertising signs Wound upon said springrollers, stretching rods at the outer ends of said signs,said stretching rods being intermittently and successively engaged bythe take-up devices, and return mechanism for said stretching rodscomprising a toothed disk, a spring-actuated latch alongside of thesame, a push-lever for turning the disk and a latch mechanism forintermittently returning the stretching rods into the path of the takeupdevices.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as my invention, I have signedmy name in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES BEILE.

Witnesses:

PAUL GOEPEL, HENRY J. SUHRBIER.

